Axial-flow hydraulic machine



Oct. 23, 1928. 1,688,809

J. H. w. GlLL l AXIAL FLow HYDRAULo MAGHNE Filed oct. 16, '1928 6 Sheets-*siegt 1 ghn, @J3 MV,

Oct. 23; 192s.

J. H. W. GILL AXIAL FLOW HYDRAULIC MACHINE 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed 001.. 16, 1926 'Ivi/INTO oct. 23, 192s.

AXIAL Filed oct. 1e, 192s y1,688,809 J. H. GlLL FLOW HYDRAULIC MACHINE 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 y r l /F Fl\;- g /4 c/ C/ CI /f'/G.2/.,

' ,Wynn/T6?? Oct. 23, 1928. i 1,888,809

J. H. W. GILL AXIAL FLOW HYDRAULICI MACHINE Filed Oct. 16, 1926 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 F/GA 23. u @ff/TOR W8 Oct. 23, 1928.

J`. H. w. GILL AXIAL FLOW HYDRAULIC MACHINE Filed om. 1e, 192s 6 sheets-sheet 5 4 i NX a 6...

Oct. 23, 1928. 1,688,809

J. H. W. GILL I AXIAL FLOW HYDRAULIC MACHINE Fi1ed 0ct. 16, 1926 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Patented 0115,23, A1928. i

UNITED STATE-s .mums EERBERT WAINWEIGHT Ginn, oF HEACHAM, ENeLaNpL xian-'mow .'HYDRAULIC' MACHINE.

Application mea ocmer 16,1926', serial 1ro-142,050, anamin creat Eritamneciembefu, 192.5.

This invention relatesto pumps, reaction -turbines or other hydraulic machines of the screw rotor type, of the kind described inthe present applicants concurrent patent appli'- cation-Serial No.,141,639, iiledOcto-ber 14,

1926, in which tlie general direction of fluid flow at the rotor is' or becomes Substantially parallel to the axis thereof. Inorder-'to be".l

^ effective in practice as a pump or fturbine,such

lll

l and the small gain due to recoverablekinetic energy of axial flow, itmay kbezsaid that whilst a `machine usually .requires suitable 'guide vanes onone or both sides of there-tor, alsov a casing shaped to promote etlicient conditions ofiow. f

In anl axial flow screwl pump theforced revL olution of the' rotor produces in the- Huid acted upon, a spiral How which can be `resolved into flow in 4an axial direction and whirl in a circumferential direction.l Generally speaking, neglecting the various losses due to friction,'eddy production and leakage,

the axial How component is responsible for the -quantity-ofuid dealt'with, .the whirl com-4 ponent is a factor in the expression for pressure or head. It can be shown theoretically that the head generated at any radius of the rotor disc is proportional to the product of the whirl and the circumferential speed of the speed of the rotor. f

rotor at that radius, orin other words proportional to. the product 0f the radius'and the whirl at that radius for constant revolution With an axialfflow screw turbine the inverse general conditions obtain, forv here whirllim'y p arted to the fluid which is energized by a'difference of head is an important factor-vin .the

torque whichv'is developed at the rotor whilst the volume of fluid necessary to the power re quirements must be accommodatedl in the speed of axial flow.

In both pumps and turbines of the axial .'ow type,,guide vanes at the inlet side of the rotor are .usually 'macessary,` the 'function of A:these guide Yanes being to prevent the occurrence of wasteful. vprewhirl in' the case of the and to impose useful prewhirl inthe case of the turbines, though it is occasionally convenient toimpose p'rewh-irl for a turbine Yby means .of a, spiral whirl chamben. Guide vanes at the'outlet side of the rotorare usually v necessary in the puin-ps though they mayv occasionally be replaced by a whirl chamber. lGuide vanes at the outletside Aof the rotor are seldom necessary4 inthe turbinesl thoughthey may be employed to inee't certain conditions. The primary o-b]ect of the invention'is to .provide a simpleconstruction vof'axial flow hydraulic machine wherein the mosteffective practical combinations of whirl and axial iow are made use of-under the conditions of. 'work- -low in an axial direction, and the slip, are .i uniform at all radii-of the-rotor'disc, whilst the dlscharge whirl-varies directly as the ra'-` dius and the head generatedvari'es directly as Ithe'. square of the radius. The head curve is thus a p'arabolaand the surface showing the distribution of head over the rotor .disc is that of a paraboloid of revolution. r1 here is consequently a great difference -between the head generated near the\axisof the roto-r and that generated near its periphery, and this steep head gradient invo ves al tendency to backflow towards the 4centr ofthe rotor disc;- rIhis defect has led'to the' common use of relatively large boss diameters,'with the object ofreducing thetotal 'head gradient and obtaining more favourable-hydrodynamic conditions by cut'tin yout the lower range ofhead values.

- Loo ed at from the point of view of head' distribution alone, the ideal condition would be a uniform head at all radii, butin practice this involves abnormal conditions-of flow'and L awkward'distributi'ons of pitch in the rotor blades, unless very large boss diameters be re' tained. Numerous suggestions have been made which result in approximating to uniform distribution of head; among these may to the end that each element of'lluid'may deincreasein revolution speed, as comparedwith mentioned designs in which'l the whirl velocityis made to vary inversely as the radius,

Avvelop equal'torqueenergy,at the rotor'. l.For

ioo

a true screw rotor ofequal'size for the same power input.' An'increase m mean pitch ag- Y gravates the excessive pitch towards the root-s' ofthe rotor blades, whilst an vincrease in revolution speed vcauses an increase .1n -the frictional losses'. Another objection in the case of los well as the rotor blades tend to assume complila screwpump is that thel outlet guide -vanes as cated forms in their distribution of; pitch. f

A further object of the-present invention.

is' therefore so to arrange the details of the machine as to produce the'most favourable 4practical compromise in the distribution of cific s eeds consistent with the avoidance of undesirable frictional 1osses, whilst the guide vanes are of sim le constructional form.

In the ,axial A cording to this invention, wherein the Vrotor may be employed-alone or combination with guide vanes on one or on both sides orboth are so shaped that theV linear velocity of whirl imparted to the fluid flowing through the rotor is radii.

It is to be understood that the phrase-impart whirl to is to be taken 'to include im-A in the o posite direction. Thus, for example,

if the uid stream alreadyhas a constant whirl Ain one direction, imparting a similar" constant whirl in the opposite direction will be equivalent to abstrating all whirl from Y the, fluid.

Although the constant whirl effect accordi' j ing to the invention ma be obtained partly or wholly by shaping t e-guide vanes, it is. preferred to obtain this c ifect 'solely by'a' suitable distribution of itch inthe'rotor blades, whether the rotor e usedinjconjunction with guide vanes or not. Y

The word approximately in theabove definition mustbe interpreted Yin a vbroad senseso as to indicate more than slight const'ructional variations from the constant whirl condition. i Thus the whirl velocity may differ at differentl radii, and thedivergence from the average whirl velocity may in cer- -tain cases amount to as much as 25%.

A mathematical analysis will show more If z represents the head generated at' dischargerfrorn the rotor at a point'distantr from the axis, and 00, c1, c2 are consta-nts, the mathematical equation for thehed generated `by a true screwrotor is h=c2r2, whilst thatvfor a rotor satisfying the constant whirl condition is It# 011' and that for arotor designed inaccordance with the theoretically ideal distribution of head is h=c, in

'each case assuming uniform velocity of axial -iiow at 'inlet to the rotor. These are the equaover the rotor discs are obtainedby rotating these curves about the axis of the rotor. The

ow hydraulic machine aceV approximately the same atV all` gthat many other rotor arrangements, for

which the head curves are of totally different head diagram from the rotor axis (suflixes l bein ,employed for special values otk), it can shown that for the true screw rotor whilst for the constant whirl rotor thereof, the rotor blades or the'giude vanesV for the constant 'head rotor 1 2" 1 f 7Co=V2R1 =2'R(1+P)" P The general expression for the head rao dius K (assu'ming the axial flow velocity to ybe uniform at all radii) can be'shown to be where P is the pitchat radius 1' and C is a constant. I

A satisfactory distribution ofihead ac.

cording to the present invention can be obtained fromallrotor arrangements in which. the headi radius has a-vvalue diiering from k1 by less than0.075 R(1-p)2.

.The f llow'ing may be instanced as an illus- 1x05 ltrationof this vdefinition of the permissible limits o f variation from constant whirlcon ditions. The equation h=Cnrn represents a family of head curves, of which 4the three head curves mentioned above are particular memberaf The head radius kn for a general member of this family of curves is given by clearly the nature ofthe permissible varia- A tion from atheoretical condition .of constant whir l n+1 1-p+2 u kn'mfB-1 pn+1l It will be found that the upper and lower vlimiting values of the head radius mentioned above areV obtained respectively when nfhas values slightly greater than ,1.5 and slightly whirl conditions. It will Vbe appreciated 125 mathematical form, will also give a satis Ifactory distribution of head, provided that their head radii lie within the limits specified. '150.

Figures 3 and 4 are similar diagrams forl a constanthead rotor,-

two oppositely rotating rotors,

A rangement shown in Fig. 24.

a volute chamber,

Figures 5-and 6 are similar diagrams for a constant whirl rotor according to the invention, and y Figures 7 and 8, Figures 9 and 10, Figures 11 and 12 and Figures 13 and 14 are similar diagrams for four other rotor arrangements according to the invention.

Figure 15 is a vertical section on an axial vplane through a simple form of pump,

Figure 16 is a diagram showing cylindrical sections `at` three radii, 16a, v16b and 16, through the rotor blades and the: inlet and. outlet guide vanes,

Figure' 17 is a plan of the pump rotor,

Figure 18 is in -its upper half a plan of the outlet guide vanes'and in its lower half a plan of the lnlet guide vanes,

Figure 19 is a view si` 'la-rito that-.of- Fig-l `ure 15 showing a modified form of pump employing adjustable outlet guide vanes, v Figure 2O is a side elevation of part of the casing of the pump shownfin Figure 19,L

Figure 21 shows a further modification in l l which an axially movable rotor is employed, Figure 22 is an axial section through a tur- ,bine employing inlet guide vanes of the wicket type, 1 C

Figure 23 shows a modification of the turbine vof Figure 22,

' Figure 24 illustrates a' further modification designed to accommodate flow in either direction through the rotor,

Figure 25 -shows a constructlon employing Figure 26 illustrates a construction'employin two rotors on the same shaft, f

igure 27 shows'a construction employing Figures 28-32 illustrate various alternative forms of rotor, Figure 2 9 beingan axial sec- .tion'through'the'rotor of Figure 28, and

` Figure 33 shows a modification of the are'.

In 4these comparative diagramsthe fol# lowing nomenclature is used t i r=radial distance from-rotorl axis." vu=circumferential velocity of rotor.

'v= absolute o'w'velocity. 'w=,whirl velocity. y v

w=theoretical axial velocity. 'y=actual axial flow velocity.-

h=head. y re1at ive fiow angle. f o

y=outlet guide vane angle.

i In all diagrams three radn r, r2 raars taken andsufixes are addedio each of the other elements 'tofindica'te the radius to which they correspond, the 'radius r2 being midway between the radii r1 and r3. These diagrams arel described with .reference to the use of the rotor in a pump, but the application to a turbinewill be. readily obtained by a-simpleinverslon, s o that for intance inlet guide vane angle.

W'itli any rotor the rotation of the blades at revolution speed 11, Would,if there were no` slip, impart to a particle of fluid at distance 1'. from the'axis an axial velocity m (equal to y becomes the4 lthe product of the Arevolution speed and the pitch). In practice, however, there must be slip (denoted by s) ,with the result that the a'c-v tua-l fluid flow has components y"(less than a: by an amount aus) in an axial direction and 'w 1n ahcircumferential direct-ion, these'q'uantities eing connected together the equations The head hgenerated at radius ris proportional to wu and'therefore also to uzs. The

pitch` at radius 1' isequal to and is therefore proportional to It is usual to design a rotor to suit certain` specified working conditions, and (except where otherwise stated) thediagrams show only the Vresults obtained when they rotor is I operating at the conditions for which it was designed. Under these conditionsthe rela' l vtive fiow angle is the actual blade angle, and y the theoretical axial velocity is equal tothe vproduct of revolution speed and pitch. When,

`however, theroto'r is operating under. conditions other than those for which-it was designed, the relative liow angle ,8 is no longer the' actual blade angle, and the theoretical axial velocity is now equal tothe product of the revolution speed and the virtual pitch.

These circumstances will be more'fully discussed' with reference to the constant whirl areuniferm at au radii and. um.

' isa arabola as shown in Figure 2.

Figures 3 and Ltirelate to a -r'otor designed head. VIn this case the whirl velocity 'w varies inversely--as'the radius and the headh is thel sameat all radii. It be noticed that thel .Figures land 2 relate to atrue screw rotor f for the theoreticallyideal distribution of -A y blades.

' showin l the rotor blades varies in a radial The velocity" diagram and the head curve for the.preferred form of rotor according to the invention are shown respectively in Figures 5 and 6. In this form the itch of irection in such a manner as to impart to or receive from the fluid flowing through the rotor a substantially uniform velocity of whirl at all radii. Thus the pitch at radius r is proportional to wards towards the axis, whilst the head in-v creases outwards towards the periphery so as to vary as the first power of the radius. The head curve thus consists of twostraight lines equally inclined to the axis, and thev surface rotor disc is that ofan inverted cone generated by the rotation of the head curve about the axis. It will be seen that the head gradient, which when steeptendstoproducebackflow towards the axis, is ver'v much smaller than for a true-screw rotor. 1', in Figures 2 and 6 be taken as the boss diameter andra' as the rotor diameter, the boss diameter then being 30% of the rotor vdiameter, the head gradient with the constant whirl rotor (Figure 6) is less than half the head gradient for the equivalent true screw rotor (Figure 2). 7 l

The description given y,in the preceding paragraph relates only to the results obtained when the rotor is operating under the working conditions for which it was' designed,

these results being shown in full lines in Fig-- ures 5 and 6'. These figures also show in dotlted line and chain line the results obtained underother working conditions. The chain lines illustrate the case when the head is )decreased, with consequent decrease in Whirl velocity and increase in axial flowvelocity, the relative flow angle and the virtual pitch being greater thanl the blade angle and the actual pitch. The dotted/lines illustrate the case .when the head is increased, with consequent increase in VWhirl velocity andV decrease inaxial flow velocity, the relative low angle.

v and the virtual pitch being less than the blade angle and the actual pitch. It will be notlced that the whirl velocity is stillconstant at all f radii in each case, as also 'is the absolute angle ofoutlow and the ratio between the head and the radius,lmt theva-lues of '-these conthe distribution of head over the i or example, if

(Figures 9 and 10) divcrges towards constant head conditions.

The head radii for these five rotors are indicated bythe dotted lines marked k in Figures 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10, the radius 1', be'ng taken as the maximum' radius of the rdtor disc, whilst the radius 7', is taken as the radius of the boss. Thus usin the notation-of the mathematical analysis given above, r3=R and r1=pR. In the drawings 1', is shown as 30% of'rs, so that p=0.3, and in this instance the ratio between the head radius and the maximum radius R has approximately the following values for the five rotors l For the true screw rotor (Figure 2) 0.765. For the constant head rotor (Figure 4) 0.650.

For the constantwhirl rotor (Figure 6) head lradius may be defined as that radiusl at which the actual head generated-is equal to the eii'ective head, i. e. to the average of theheads generated at all points of the rotor disc, the effective head thus being obtained by dividing the volume swept out by the rotation of the head diagram by the area of the rotor disc. With the constant whirl rotor the ef- 'fective head radius is theoretically only a -little shorter than that for the true screw' rotor (inthe particular case illustrated in the diagrams about {3l/2% shorter), and the theo-- retical increase in revolution speed is therefore negligible. yIn actual practice, with a ,screw pump, it' has been found that for the same head and quantity the revolution speed vis slightly lower for a constant Whirl rotor than for the equivalent true screw rotor,

. owing to gains in other directions.

rotor' whose blades conform toa helix of constant pitch) of suitable axial length, biy

. twisting the radial inlet guide vanes adjacent to the rotor, so as toproduce 'aforced feed near the axis and a starved feed'f'near the periphery. The velocity diagram andthe head.` curve for such an arrangement are shown in full lines in Figures l1 an'd12, (the results obtained with a true screw rotor with normal feedbeing shown dotted for purposes of comparison) and anindication is given below the velocity diagram in Figure v11- of theinclination of the inlet; s g'uide-vanes'A It will be noticed that the head curve (F 12) for this arrangement is identical with the head curve for the constant whirl rotor (Fi ure 6,) but although equalizinQg the whirl, this arrangement would-not be very satisfactory in practice on account of edd vlosses and inequality of flow.. For it will e seen that the l axialI How velocity y is greatest near the `pe arrangementwhich may bel useful in certain I riphery and smallestnear the axis, whilst t-he general tendency is for-flow speeds to become uniform across a section transverse to the axis or even slightly 'greater near the 'axis than near-the periphery. Moreover this' .ar-

'rangement has not the advantage possessed tained solely by the design of the rotor blades,

may be of practical value in certain instances. Insuch acompromise the desired condition can be approximatedt'o partly by the pitch ldistribution of the` rotor blades and partly by a twist-ing of the inlet guide vanes,-

Figures 1 3 and-'14 show Vrespectively a, velocity diagram and a head curve fornliother instances. In this example a true screw rotor is again employed and the inlet guide vanes are twisted so asA to produce a forced lfeed near the axis anda starved feed near the pe- Vriphery.\ .The extent :of twisting .of the inlet vanes is however lessthan in the arrangementV illustrated in-Figures lland '1-2, and

is made such that the absolute. direction of outflow from the discharge side of the rotorl isthe same at all radii. l It'wll lbr noticed' 'that the whirl is 'no lon er the same at all radii, but the variation rom constant whirl vo'lvingabnormally high'slip ratios) yet such as to come within lthe limits specified The head curve forfthis arrangement is shown in Figure 14-and the head radius indicated b the dotted line la (with normal'fslip valueslies between those -of the arrangements of Figures 6 and 8. This arrangement, although not having such high -eciency'asthe preferre'd arrangement of Figures 5- and 6, pos

sesses (in common with the: preferred arrangement) the important practical advan-A discharge from the rotor .can also be obtained tage that the outlet guide vanes when disposed adjacent to the rotor may have a constant inclination from rootto tip. I t will be apreciated thata uniform angle of absolute with'forms of rotor other than the true screw rotor by twisting the inlet guide v'anes'in a manner suitable to the shape of Athe rotor `Thus the condition fora uniform ahgleof discharge from the rotor is thatthe whirl g velocity w' is proportional tothevaxial iiow velocity y at all radii. Hence the pitch of the rotor blades at radius r must be propor'l d tional .to f

Ty*l

where ois a constant, if al uniform angle of .this form of rotor the 'distributionotpitcm combined 'with a projected areaand distribution of blade surface as necessary to-promote steady conditions of dow, issuch as to render this type of rotor a much stronger mechanical unit than an equivalent true Screw rotor. Moreover the employment of a constant'l whirl rotor has another very `important advantage in lscrew pump construction (brieiy referred to in the preceding paragraph) for the reason that, with uniform velocity of axial flowV the absolute vdirection and speed of outflow (represented byy and lv in Figure 5) v from the rotor are constant atall radii. This enables the out.v

let guidevanes, when arranged adjacent to `thel rotor, tol be' of very simpleconstruction,

in that the 'inclination of their edges l ing rootto tip.

l-The invention mayv l next to the rotor is now madeuni'form rom be carried intoractice' in variouswa s but Figures .l5-3250 thev accompanying rawings'illustrate by "ayoo I i; ,115-

example some convenient constructions of p um s andof turbines according thereto. VI'he simple form of axial flow pump shown cylindricall bossB1 of lsuitable diameter mounted on afdriving shaft B?. In thereon# struction illustrated the rotor has four blades B each with sickleeshaped edges- 1.7) and is of open form, the tips o the blades in Figures 15-18 comprises. a bladed 'rotor i conditions is (except undercircumstances ill-. I 120 (see Figurel f lying close tothe wallof the casing A. The

ilrlet guide vanes and theoutlet gluidevanes D are-mounted in the pump casing A at their convert the whirl into head or pressure energy outer .ends and in suitable bosses C1 and 'Dx at their inner ends, theoutlet guide Avane boss D1 containing bearings for the rotor shaft B. The rotor is of the constant whirl type, `for which vthe conditions' of flow have been 'de- 1 scribed with .reference to Figuresv 5 and 6.

Figure 16 showsthe cross-section of each rotor blade'at the boss', at the mid-radius and at the tips, the three radii of the sections shownthus corresponding to the radii r, 1', r, of Figure 6. The sections areindicated in Figures 15 and 16 by the corres ondingly numbered lines. It

will be noticed t at the sections of the working face of the blades are straight and are inclined at angles corresponding to 1 of the diagram of Figure 5, whilst the backs of the blades are curved to give the necessary thickness and strength in the middle and yet to re'- tain shar blade edges. Thus the pitch of the blades,'w lich is uniform in an axial-direction at any given radlus, decreases. radially outy ward in such a'manner as to impart to the fluid stream actedl upon by the rotor a velocity of whirl at outflow which has the same linear.v .value at all radii;

The net cross=sectional rea available for fluid flow between the blades is so proportioned that the aXial component of flow is approximately constant at all radii. Under these conditions it will beclearfrom the description already given with reference to- Figure 5 that the'angle of absolute outflow from the .rotor (i. e.'the inclination ofthe path of each individual -iluid particle to the transaxial plane of discharge from the rotor) is constant at all radii. The arrows in Figures '16 and 17 indicate. the direction of rotation of the rotor.

q The inletl guide vanes' C (see particularly Figure 16 and the lower half of Figure 18) lie l mainly in surfaces whose direction is axial,

and their main function is to prevent excessive j prewhirlffrom occurring and to guidethe fluid `eddy'ing at inflow tothe blades.

evenly in an axial direction towards the rotor.

The edges of the inlet vanes next to the rotor are, however, preferably curved slightly 'in the direction of rotation of the rotor\ (as shown at C? in Figure 16) in order to. avoid radii the .v ick-u .angle of the outlet ide a p p gu vanes D is also uniform throughout the length of each vane. The outlet vanes D are curved. so that the fluid leaving these vanes flows 1n an axial direction.v These outlet vanes serve to These edges without augmenting the axial ilow velocity..

In the example illustrated seven outletvanes are provided and their. lower edges' are dis-- posed in radial planes.\ 'u With thisl arrangement the rotor operates by its-revolution to draw the fluid through the' inlet guidel vane'- space in anaxial'direction, .and to impart to the fluid a whirl velocityof discharge which isconstant at all radii,'the

'axial velocity of flow being uniform. This axialvelocity of flowvdeterminesthe-quantity of fluid dealt with by the pump and the whirl velocityis converted into headl or'pressure,

energyk by the outlet guide vanes.V .'The crosssectionalkareas available for tl1e. iluid stream throughout the machine are such as topromote a minimum of disturbance in the condition's of stable axial flow.

,In the foregoing description the rotor has been described as ofthe constant whirl typeg nearly as satisfactory from the .point of view ofthe distribution of head over the rotor disc, Vcan 'also be obtain'edifthefpitch distribution is such as will give only an approximation to Vconstant whirl conditions. A Thus therotor' may be intermediate in form betweenthose der--v scribed with reference'to Figures 7 andl 9.`

It should be remembered, however, that any considerable departure from the constant It will be appreciated that results, which are whirl 4condition (unless accompanied by a corresponding variationinthe'axial flow velocity resulting\for example from twisting thev inlet 4uide vanes in the manne-r indicated at the ttom of- Figure 13) will result inl aV varying angle of absolute flow from the outlet side lof the rotor and will consequently necessitate `a y more complicated shape-for the outlet guide Valles.

n win be observed that, 'for the-bauer guide vanes of a screw pump,1the pick-up angle (i. e. the inclination ofthe'edges of thel outlet guide vanes when these lie adjacent to do 4 p the rotor) is, when fixed, correct only for one definite combination of head and quantity@ lat anylgiven s eed of revolution 4,ofr--thej rotor.

incidence of the maximum elliciencyrattain able at thel given speed of revlolutron.-v .--To-ro tain maximum efficiencles for Othereombma.`

direction of flow from the rotor;` With. out-' V- e let guide vanes havinghelical surfaces. as

suitable for the conditions of flow imposed by atrue screw rotor, -anvadjustment ofthes'e vanes about their longitudinal axeswould result in their becoming out of pitch. With guide vanes having a uniform angle 'of pickup, however, to conform with't-he ilow conditions imposed by a constant' whirl rotor, vthe extended through the vanes or the pickup edges thereof may be rotated about their longitudinal axes to accommodate a very considerable range of variation in the working conditions of the ma- 45 chine with corresponding high efficiencies over a wide range. Such anarrangement is illustrated in Figures.- 19 and 20.l

In the onstruction shown in Figures 19 and 20 th rotor and the inletguide vanes l f are arranged'in a manner similar to that of the construction of Figures -'18 (with the exception that the varylng axial length of the rotor is accommodated by shaping itsoutlet surface so that the inlet surface oftherotor I5 andthe outlet surface of the inlet guide vanes' are plane) andwill vnot be further described.v the same reference letters being employechy The outlet guide vanes are, however, dif-v ferently arranged vand each individual outlet Ivane E is so mounted' in the casing A as to be rotatable Iabout a long-itudinal'axis. Thus each vane E has a cylindricalshank- E1 of large diameter passing through the casing A, and this shankE1 carries voutside the casing 2 5Ua disc E2 havingslots Eathrou h which pass bolts E* engaging in tapped hoes in the-casing. v Thus wh the disc E2' and therefore also the 'vane E can be rotated through av small angle. The.

inner ends of the'vanes E lie uadjacent to the boss AB1 ofthe rotor which is in this instance uide vane space.` It will be appreciated that the outlet guide vanes may be arranged'in other ways so as to be rotatable about their longitudinal axes,

and thatv means (such `for example as those shown in Figures 22 and 23) may be provided for simultaneously rotating" all j the outlet vanes in circumstances where individual ad- 40 `justment of the vanes `1s unsatisfactory.

Instead of mounting the outlet g-uidevanes adjacent to the rotor,` it may'sonietimes bepreferable to provide a clearance space be- 'tween t-heseelements. I f then either the roen the bol-ts vE4 are slacked olf same reference letters being employed) withY the'exception that there is a greater distance between them. The rotor, however, is in vthis instance so mounted that it Ican be moved axially within the space between the two sets to that shown in dotted lines. The rotor is preferably again ofthe constant whirl type and comprises blades F carried by a boss b mounted on therotorshaft F2, the construction of the rotor being identical with'that already described witli referenceto Figures The arrangement of .Figure 21 is also of importance inthe case when the rotor itself whirl conditions or in the case when an approxlmation to constant whlrl conditions is ditions of flow when the Huid leaves the rotoi` vwill bef those of acompound vortex of some kind depending upon the law governing the pitch variations-in the rotor or the extent of twisting of the inlet luide vanes. The gradual'transition from t is compound vortex to a free vortex will cause thev relation between whirl and radius to vary at different axial distances from the rotor. The absolute direction of flow ofthe fluid particles will also change, and it will thus be possible to choose 4obtained with a true screw rotor by twisting v 'the inlet-guide vanes. 4In such cases the conan axial length for the clearance space b etween the rotor andthe outlet guide vanes s o that theseeva'nes may be of simple and convenientconstruction Without any serious'loss in etliciency.

The constructicins of Fi ures 15.2 l have been described with especia reference to employment as axial iow p mps. These conv structions can however, also be applied as axial' flow turbines, -although in such cases Taking first the simple arrangement of Figures 15-18, in which a'rotor ofthe con'- some modification will generally be desirable.

45 tor or the set of outletguide vanos be made stant whirl t pe ismounted between two sets. of ixedguicle vanos, coaxial with and adjacentto the rotor, the inlet ,guide vanes for the turbine which were the outlet 'gu-ide" I `v anesD for t e pump) act to impart whirl to the fluid entering the-rotor.` The Huid o p` movable in an laxial direction', so as to, vary the axial length of this clearance space, an effect maybe obtained somewhat vsimilxt 1" t4 that produced by rotating-the--vanes about 5 0 their axes, for the conditions of flow in the fluid leaving the rotor will' be those of `a forced or compound vortex', and these conditions will tend to change*` in the 'clearance space into those of a free vortex. The ab- 55- solute direction of flow of the iuid'particles will, thus vary at different' axial. distances fromthe rotor, andthe axial length ofthe clearance space maybe adjusted so `that the pick-upl angle-ofl the outlet guide vanes most to nearly coincides withthe `absolute direction oftlow. f-

Such an arrangement is illustrated in Firrure 21, wherein the inlet fan-d outlet guile vanes 'are arran ed in *the'same manner as 'Q5 `in the construction of Figures15-18- (the crates on the blades B of the rotor and ycauses it torotate,L the whirl energy of the fluid being converted into torque energy in the rotor shaft B2. If operating under conditions of l Videal theoretical eiiciency all the whirl would be abstracted from the fluid and converted into torque, and 'when theffluidleav'es the t v rotor its absoluteI direction of flow would be axial; It will be' seen that the outlet'v uidel vanes (which were.v the inlet guide'vanes C for the pump) would then become unnecessary and could be dispensed vwith. In cases I where considerablev whirl remains in the iiuid discharged from the rotor, however, the provision of guide vanos at the outlet side may be desirable in order to reduce'the possibility of the formation of an air core and to avoid retardation of the discharge by reason of spiral flow. These guide vanes, if placed adjacent' to the rotor, would have'their edges, which lie next to the rotor, curved slightly towards the diectionof rotation of the rotor \(instead of with the direction of rotation as in the case of the eddy losses. Y

The considerations governing the\inclina pump) in order to avoid tion of the edges of the inlet guide vanes when adjacent to the rotor of a turbine, are exactly the same as thosedescribed Withref erence to outlet guideva-nes" for ja ump.

'lhuswhen a constant whirl "rbtor' is' em- 4,

` ployed, the inlet guideA vane? edges should have a constant inclin'ationi'rom lroot to tip,

in order to impart constant absoluteV direction of flow to the'l` lluid 'entering the rotor.

` As in the pump, the actual inclination of these guide vannes uwill be theoretically correct only for one delinite combination Vot head and quantity for eachvalue of revolution speed of the rotor, .and the alternative arran ement of Figures 19 and 20, in which t e 'guide vanes a-rerotatably mounted about their longitudinal axes is of considerable` importance in a turbine, as will be clear with-l out further description.

A certain amount'ot-variation .from constant whirl conditions in .the designed dis clearance space of constant or variable axiall length is provided between the rotorV and the outlet guide vanes of the pumpyis of considerabie importance in the application to a turbine. In such application, the provision ot'lan adjustable' clearance space permits of some considerablelatitude in the sha e of the inlet guide vanes (i. e. the'v pump out et guide vanes) and in the distribution of pitch in the blades of the rotor, for by an adjust-mentof the clearance space and consequent modification in the control of the absolute direction of flowthe effect of variations in design maybe largely compensated.

This consideration leads up to animpor tant alternative arrangement of hydraulic machines according to the invention. This arrangement, alternative forms of which are illustrated lin Figures 2224 and 33, is of especial' importance in a turbine and will therefore be described withreference thereto, but

it will be understoodthat -it can also be-em-A ployed with advantage, in certain instances, l for an axial iiow pump.- Y

In the arrangemen of Figure 522, the screwL 'proportional to the radius.

v rotor, which is designed for constant whirlor approximately constant'whirl conditions and comprises blades K carried by a 4boss K1 mounted on the rotor shaft K", is mounted to rotate within a vertically arranged cylindrical downflow casing G. The inflow to the top of this downfiow casing is horizontal and' may take place eitherfthrough a series of suitably'disposed passagesv or through a. continuous passage formed between, a flange Gl 4on the upper end of the casing G and a cover plate G carried on a fixed boss G3, through which the rotor shaft K passes, the flange 4Gr1 and the platev G2 being connectedftogether by bolts G. The horizontal inflow is controlled by a series of 'vertically pivoted vanes H ofA the balanced wicket-type (such as are commonly employed with those hydraulic tur' bines whose iniow is inward and downward), l

the bolts Gconveniently being employed as thel pivots by the vanos) 4 i Thefnumber and size of thel vanes are grouped on a circleconcentricwith `the axis of the rotor, is-preferably such that when all the vane's have' been" rotated" into-"theirbroadside-bn positions the inflow passage will be completely closed. `It is also prefer-I able toprovide means for simultaneously rotating these vanes about their axes. One convenient arrangement is illustrated by way of exam le in Figure 22, wherein a splder J i I is rotata ly mounted on the fixed bo'ss G3 and has Slots J? within which can slide pins J2;V t on theinner ends of arms J*l carried by the vanesI-I. Thus when the spider-J is rotated through a small angle either directly by hand or through suitable controlling mechanism,

ofthe downflow passage will becorrespon 1n fo if desired, have sloping Orcuri7` d These guide lvanes'H act to imparta whirl; 'n to the fluid, which'tlows into the turbine under the action of the difference of level between` the headrace and the tailrace of the in achinef The conditionsof whirl imposed' initially by the guide vanes u on the inflowing Huid are those which obtain 1n ya 'forced vortex, in

r ges; usine j dicate'd respectively in dotted v es .at H, and l, n

.the vanes H will all rotate simultaneously and the angle of lniiow of the fluid into the to v .105.,

"'glly altered. The guide vanes 'H'instead of Vj owing'the usual rectangularvoutline may,

lim

which the whirl velocity is directly propor- I tional to the radius. Downlow takes places,

however, and the 4natural conditions imposed on whirlingL downtlow are th/ose of a free' vortex, in which the whirl velocity is inversely There will thus be 'a gradual transition from forced to free vortex flow, and there will be an intermediate compound vortex condition which corresponds fairly closely with the desired constant whirl conditions, whilst over a fairly wide range the conditions will not differ materially from those ofconstant whirl.- Y n f ion ist,V I

. sage The cylindrical downiiow casing M is in this .-f case rovided with an inclined outflowpasef at its lower end, the outflow being"` controlled by vanes W1 of the balanced wicket type pivoted about bolts W2, whose axes4 flic on the surface of a cone coaxialwith the rotor. The adjustment of the vanes W1 is effected in the same manner as lthe adjustment of the inlet vanes N, by roviding each vane with a small projection 3 engaging in a slot vX1 in a pro']ection X2 from an annular member X rotatably mounted on the outside of the t e diameter -of the casing M isrelatively large, it is desirable to support the member X on sliightly coned rollers X* engaging in a groove 3 on thecasingM. The manner of operation of this arrangement will at once be clear from the descriptions given with ref# Y losses) the whirl imparted by one rotor will erence to Figures 23 and 24.

In the constructions shown in" Figures 22-24 `and 33, it may be' desirable in some cases to Iemploy 'fixed guide vanes in place of the balanced wicket vanes, and a similar effect calf also be obtained by arranging the inlet in the case of a turbine) v or the outlet (in t e'case of a pump) in the form of a series'of tangentially disposed passages or a singleY spiral passage with o r without 'guide vanes.

One such-arrangement is illustrated in Figure 25, more especially intended for use as'a pump" but applicable also as a turbine.

In this arrangement a constantwhirl rotor Son a shaft S1 is mounted above and adjacent to fixed inlet guide vanes S1 in a casingaSl which terminates atA its upper end in a volute discharge passage S4, the shape of this passage being such as to render outlet` guide vanes unnecessary. p In some instances whether for lumps or for turbines) thecon itions of wor ng may require the employment of two or more rotors arran d in 'series on the sameshaft instead of a single rotor. An arrangement with two i rotors is shownby way of example in'Fi are both of the constant whirl type and arel 26.*` In this arrangement the two rotors mounted on a shaft Tto rotate within a fixed casing T. Sets of guide vanesT T T1 are mounted alternately with the rotors,

the intermediate set-T thus acting simultaneously as the inlet vaneset for one rotor and the outlet vane \set` for the other rotor.. As

shown in the drawings,'the vanes'l4 T are iixed-withinthe casing T.a adjacent to the rotors, but it will be appreciated that some ofthese vanes may be rotatable about longitudinal axes as in the construction of Fi re 19 or again the terminal sets of vanes T' may 'mounted at a distance from the rotors cylindrical casing M. Owing to the fact that and may beef the balanced wicket type as described .with reference`to Figures `22424. `In another arrangement (Figure 27),

l"which may be of advantage incertain in.`

stances either forpumps or for turbines or vwhilst the blades of the other are left-handed.

With this arrangement guidevanes U1" may be employed on the ump` inlet or turbine outlet) side, but it will generall eunnecessary to provide guide vanes on t e pump outrotor U1 will itself perform the functions of such guide vanes. Thus if the two rotors are substantially identical 4with one another (apart ,from thelreversal of direction of the vblades and any allowance for hydraulic be exactly taken out by the other rotor.' If the two rotors have materially'diierent pitch,

let (or'turbine inlet) side, for thesec'ond the desired whirl compensation can still be y obtained by so 'arranging the gearing be-' tweenkthe two shafts as tol'give appropriate relative speeds 01E rotation. An advantage of this arrhn ement is that the secondrotor will adequate yperform the vfunctions of the Y guide vanesunder all conditions of flow. Another `advantage is fthat larger power andhead can be associated with a given diameterl ofrotor lat a given revolution speed. It will be.appr eciated that, if the caring between the two shafts -is dispense lwith rangement may 'be employed as" a this arhydraulic power transmission mechanism, one of the rotors, say U, connected to the driving shaftI U2 acting asra pump, whilst the other rotor U1 connected to the driven shaft U acts's a turbine'.

In all the arrangements may vary structurally in various ways, whi e conforming to the conditions of constant or approximately constant whirl. Figures 28,-32 show various alternative forms of rotor b way of example, the arrows indicatngthe direction 'oflrotation when used'in a pump.

described the rotor 1 .ilo

iusl

Thus Figures 28 and 29 illustrates rotor hav- Aing two radial-ed d blades 'V mounted be tween a cylindrica boss V1 and a cylindrical shroud V. Figure 30 shows a similar.

shrouded rotor with three blades V having sickle-shapedv ed s. ,-Other shapes off y shroud and vboss or' example conical or curved .as indicated for the shroud' by vthe vdotted lines-V* Vf respectively in Figure 29) may -be employed as -may be' convenient.

ist

Figures-31 and 32 show twoo n rotors retively havi four and five lades V and. Wcin one case with both blade edges tangen- I following e i tially arranged, whilst in the other caseA the ges are tangential and the lead ing edges are partially tangential and parplane may have such distribution and such'l tially sickled. It will be appreciated that the arrangement of the blades may be modiied in many ways, Whilst the number of. blades and the projected area ona transaxial ratio to the total disc area as may be best suited to the workin conditions.

The projection of t e blades on a plane con- 1 taining the axis may have the. blade edges straight, inclined, or curved and the direction of one edge having been determined, as

` most suitable to the Working conditions, the

depth of the blade and the outline of the other edge thereof will be determined by the pitch,

and thedistribution of area projected on theV transaxialplane.

Cylindrical sections of the blades taken at any radii may be of parallel thickness` lenticular, streamlined, or other suitable .sliape, according to 'the Conditions of working, and the blade edges may be rounded.

rlhe structural consideration for therotor blades apply equally to the guidevanes.

Various forms of casing can'be employed,

as best-adapted to the structural arrangements of turbines and pumps which comprise rotors designed-for approximately uhiform whir1"conditions and the axes of the machines may be vertical, horiozntal or inclined, as best suited to the particular conditions of service.

The internal contours of the casings must be such as to avoid sudden changes in the general direction and velocity of fluid flow and to reduce frictional and eddy losses to a practical minimum.

Apart from the radial variation 1n pitch to produce a constant. Whirl effect or an approximation thereto, the blades of the rotor` may be given axial variation in pitch, without c interfering with the condition. that the Whirl velocity imparted to the fluid isapproximately the same at all radii.

It will be appreciated that the Variousconstructions and arrangements more particufl la-rlydescribed'xhave been givenby way of example only and'that modifications maybe made without departing from thescope of the invention. Again, although the inventionv has been described more particularly with regard to itsapplication to axial flow pumps and turbines, itis also applicable to -other types of axial flow hydraulic machines,

suchv for example as` screw Dropellers, in which case the screw rotor Vmay be employed either alone or in conjunction with guide vanes.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure bv Letters Patent is g-f- 1. Ari-axial flowv-hydraulidmachine, 'inl 'cluding in* combination a casing, a bladed rotor rotatably disposed within vthe casing 'and having bladesv whosepitch varies in a radial direction in such a manner. that' vthe where 4AR is'the maximum radiusof the rotor disc and p? is the radius ofv the rotor boss, and a set o guidevanes disposed on the side of the rotor corresponding-to the inlet side when the machine is acting as a turbine, the

Where R is the maximum radius of the rotor disc and pR is the radius of the rotor boss, anda set of guide vanes disposed on the inlet side of the rotor, the rotor being so mounted in the casing as to be axially movable therein relatively to the guide vanes.

3. An axial flow li'ydrbulic machine,` in.- cluding in combination a cylindrical casing, a bladed rotor the pitch of whose blades varies yin a radial direction substantially inl such a manner as to bel proportional to l l i where 1' is the radius and c is aconstant,aset of lim guide varies disposed on the side of the rotor` v correspondingl to the inlet' side when the machine is acting asa turbine each-vane being rotatable about its longitudinal axis, and

means for rotating the guide vvaries about in the theiraxes,the rotor being so moun casing as to'be axially movable therein relatively to the' guide varies.'

4. An. axial flow hydraulic machine, in-

cluding in combination a casing, a vbladed rotor rotatabl Idisposed Within the casing and'fhaving b ades whose pitch varies in a radial directionA substantially in such a7manner as be proportional, to

where r is the radiusv and c is a constant, a passage extending from the end ofthe casing corresponding fto the inlet' end vwf'en the machine is acting as a turbine in a directiontransverse to the axis ofthe rotor, and a set of guide varies disposed Within this .assagef '5. An axial flow hydraulic tur ine,` including in combination a downilowcasing, a

' l bladedrotor rotatably disposed within the and a set of pivoted guide vanes of the balcasing and having blades whose pitch varies in a radial vdirection substantially in such a manner as to be proportional to 1*"6 wherel is theradius and c is a constant, an inclined inflow passage symmetrically extendinc from Ithe upper end of the casing,

u anced wicket type controlling the infiow through the inclined passage. v

6. An axial ovv hydraulic machine, including in combination a cylindrical casing, a bladed rotor lrotatably disposed Within the casing and having blades whose pitch varies rotor,

in a radial direction in suchel manner that the head radius lies between.;l

galli-:lijmen R(1 py where R is the maximum radius of the'- rotor disc and pR is the radius of the roto'r boss, a passage extending symmetrically vfrom the end of the casing corresponding to the inlet `end when the machine is acting as a turbinel in a direction transverse tothe axis of the: `a set of pivoted' guide vanes lof the balancedfwicket type controlling'the -low lth'rouch'this passage, and means for rotating g the guide 4v'anesabo'ut 'theirl pivots, vtherotorV being so mounted in-thc'casing asto be axially radial 3 cluding'in combination a casing, abladed rotor the pitch of whose'blades variesfin a direction in such a manner that the headgradiusf lies between disc and pR is the radiusvof the rotor bos set of guide vanes disposed on the side of means for rotating the guide vanes about their axes, and a second set of guide vanes dis- .posed on the other side of the rotor-,the rotor and the first set of guide vanes being so`v mounted that the axial distance between them can be varied. I

x8. A n axial flow hydraulic machine, in-

rotor rotatably disposed within the casing and having blades whose pitch varies in a l radialdirection substantially in such a manl ner as to be proportional to wheren is'the radius and c4 is a constant', two. passav-es extending respectively. from the two endg of the casing in directions transverse "to the axis of the rotor, and two sets of guides vanes respectively-controlling the flow through the two passages'.

s as the rotor corresponding to the inlet side whenl the machine'is acting asa turbine, each vane -being rotatable about its longltudinal axis,

cluding in combination a casing, a bladed e 9. An axial iiow hydraulic turbine, in-

y cluding in combination a cylindrical down-v flow. casing, a bladed rotorotatably disposed` within thecasing and having blades whose-v pitch varies in a radial direction in such a manner that the head radius lies between' disc and pRis thel radius of the rotor boss, inow and outflow passages symmetrically extending respective verse to the axis of the rotor and two sets of pivoted glidevanes of the balanced wicket type controlling the flow through theinilow and outflow passages respectively, the rotor being so mounted in the casing as to be axially movable therein.

testimony ;v um uumlr wmvmcur cm.

p y from the upper and, lower ends of the caslng in directions trans'- whereof I have myname to this specification.

where R is the maximum radius of the roto l 

